Ticketamerica.com has tickets for sleepcountry amphitheater tickets and ben hill griffin stadium tickets and bcs national championship tickets.

Ticketamerica.com has concert tickets for chris botti seating at the Beacon Theatreand christian zacharias tickets at Carnegie Hall – NY or christina perri tickets seating arangement.

Can Statistics Be Used Effectively To Determine An Nba Players Salary?

How do employers decide the salary payout to their employees every year? In a sales and consulting firm the salary can be based on the number sales or clients serviced. How do the National Basketball Association NBA team owners decide the players salaries? The general consensus of basketball fanatics is that the wages are based on points scored. Others will argue that it is determined by other measurable statistics such as rebounds assists and games played. It is also possible that the salary payout is affected by the players popularity and nongame issues. Therefore I felt the need to run a series of statistical testing to determine the cost driver of the players salaries.

First I gathered data on the top 35 players based on total points scored in 2007. Throughout this article I will frequently refer to the term cost driver which is an independent variable that drivers or affects the dependent variable of salary. Basically the cost driver is on the xaxis and the salary will be on the yaxis. The different cost drivers I chose for testing are points scored rebounds assists and games played. I used two different methods which are regression analysis and highlow costing to test the effectiveness of the cost drivers.

The highlow method is a relatively easy method since I will only be using the high and low points of the cost drivers and salary. If you are using Microsoft Excel you can simply use the MIN and MAX functions for each column to determine the highlow values. However I am only observing two data points for each cost driver and the salary. Below are the results from running the minimum and maximum functions on the cost drivers and salaries:

Points: High 2430

Assists: High 884

Low 1350 Low 68

Games: High 82

Low 51

Salaries:

High 23750000

Low 1808120

I can perform the highlow cost function of Y=a bx however it is not necessary to perform that equation. I noticed that the player with 2430 points had a lower salary than 23750000. I also discovered that the player that earned only 1808120 scored more than 1350 points. These numbers are not good or strong enough to develop a reasonable estimate for salary compensation. Usually if the highlow method does not work then the regression is not likely to work either. I still chose to do the regression analysis since I am motivated to find what determines a players salary exactly.

A regression analysis is a statistical method for obtaining the cost estimate that best fits the set of data points. Basically the regression observes all the data points within each cost driver and dependent variable to develop the most reliable cost equation. After performing the regression there are two crucial measures that I will observe closely. These measures are the Rsquared and tvalue statistic. The Rsquared is a number between 0 and 1 to measure the explanatory power of the regression. The Rsquared is a way of determining to what extent a change in the dependent variable can be predicted by a change in the independent variable. Most statisticians look for an Rsquared that is at least 0.51. The tvalue statistic is a measure of the reliability of each independent variable or the degree to which an independent variable has a valid stable longterm relationship with the dependent variable. Typically statisticians desire a tvalue statistic greater than 2 when running a regression analysis. Below are the results from my regression:

Points: Rsquare 0.105 tvalue 1.97

Assists: Rsquare 0.004 tvalue 0.36

Rebounds: Rsquare 0.055 tvalue 1.38

Games: Rsquare 0.055 tvalue 1.94

Based on the results of the regression the numbers are too weak to develop an effective equation to determine the salary for each player. Example the Rsquared of 0.105 means the all the data in the points column only explains 10.5 of the salary that was paid to the players. The other Rsquare values are less than 0.10 which is extremely weak. Also all the tvalue statistics are below 2.0 which indicate little or no statistical relationship between the independent and dependent variables.

I decided to conduct a multiple regression on the points assists rebounds games played and salary as a final attempt to determine the validity and reliability of the data. Previously I was running a regression using one independent variable. In the multiple regression analysis I included all the independent variables to help strengthen the explanatory power of the regression. After completing the multiple regression analysis I had an Rsquare of 0.42 and a tvalue statistic of 2.10 for independent variable 1points. The other independent variables had tvalues lower than 2.0. When considering points assists rebounds and games played combined as one giant cost driver the regression is able to explain 42 of the salaries paid. There are still 58 of the salaries that are statistically unexplained. The 58 can be attributable to nonstatistic measures such as exposure and popularity.

To conclude one cannot determine with absolute certainty that an NBA players salary based on statistic analysis of measurable statistics such as points scored assists rebounds and games played. I was able to learn that a players salary is not solely based on the measurable performance stats. A players true worth to the team is sometimes determined by immeasurable factors such as popularity exposure loyalty and leadership. Through my statistical analysis or investigation I state that no players salary can be reasonably determined on the basis of performance on the court.

NOTE: The salaries and statistics were gathered from NBA.com and SportsCity.com.

About the writer:  This is an Online Basketball Coaches’ Club designed to help other coaches learn about this game.

Basketball Fun Facts: Nba Records

Scoring

Most points scored in a single game: Wilt Chamberlain March 2 1962 100 points followed by Kobe Bryant Jan. 22 2006 81 points

Most points scored in one half: Wilt Chamberlain March 21962 59 points

Most points scored in a quarter: George Gervin 33 points

Most points scored in overtime: Gilbert Arenas December 17 2006 16 points

Most threepoint shots made in one game: Kobe Bryant January 7 2003 12 shots

Most threepoint shots made in one half: Kobe Bryant March 28 2003 8 shots

Most threepoint shots made in one quarter: Michael Redd February 20 2002 8 shots

Most points scored in a NBA AllStar game: Wilt Chamberlain 42 points

Most points per game average in a NBA Season: Wilt Chamberlain 19611962. 50.4 ppg.

Most Points scored in a NBA Career: Kareem AbdulJabbar 38387 followed by Karl Malone 36928 Michael Jordan 32292 and Wilt Chamberlain 31419.

Most points per game in a NBA career: Michael Jordan 32.12 ppg.

Most seasons leading scorer: Michael Jordan 10

Steals

Most steals in a single game: Larry Kenon Dec. 26 1976 tied with Kendall Gill April 3 1999 with 11 steals.

Most steals in NBA career: John Stockton 3625

Blocks

Most blocks in a single game: Elmore Smith October 28 1973 with 17 blocks.

Most blocks in NBA career: Hakeem Olajuwon 3830

Assists

Most assists in one game: Scott Skiles with 30 assists.

Most assists in NBA career: John Stockton 15806 Mark Jackson 10334 and Magic Johnson 10141.

Rebound

Most rebounds in a NBA Career: Wilt Chamberlin 23924

Most rebounds in a game: Wilt Chamberlin 55

MVPs

Most number of Regular Season MVPs: Kareem AbdulJabbar 6

Most number of Finals MVPs: Michael Jordan 6

Coach

Highest WinLoss Record by a coach on a regular season: Phil Jackson .713 W891 L359

Other Records

Most games played in Career: Robert Parish 1611

First NBA Champion: Philadelphia Warriors 1947

Multiple champions: Boston Celtics 15

Highest combined final score in a NBA game: Denver Nuggets vs. Detroit Pistons on December 13 1983 370 points. Detroit won 186184 in 3 OTs.

Lowest combined points in a NBA game: Boston Celtics62 vs. Milwaukee Bucks 57 on February 27 1955 119 combined points

Best record by a NBA team in one season: Chicago Bulls 19951996 Season. 72 wins and 10 losses.

Worst record by a NBA Team in one season: Philadelphia 76ers 197273 season. 9 wins and 73 losses.

Longest winning streak: Los Angeles Lakers 33 games

Longest home winning streak: Boston Celtics 38 games

Longest losing streak: Cleveland Cavaliers 24 games

Youngest player to score 1000 points: LeBron James 20 years and 41 days

About the writer:  Find tips about basketball positions and basketball tips at The Basketball Coach.

55th NBA All Star Game

The 55th annual NBA All Star Game was won by the East team last Sunday 122120 at the Toyota Center.

Cleveland’s LeBron James was named the game’s MVP after scoring 29 points. As he declares he wasn’t thinking of winning the MVP but winning the NBA All Star Game game. The NBA player made four threepointers six rebounds and two assists to become the youngest NBA AllStar MVP at age 21.

Tracy McGrady of the NBA Houston Rockets led the West team with 36 points but shot an air ball on a potential gametying basket with 9.9 seconds left. James admitted afterward that he hit McGrady on the arm on the shot but no foul was called.

By halftime the West led 7053. Former President George Bush who was present at the NBA game seemed to enjoy the West’s offensive ability although the East was offering little to no defensive resistance.

Interesting NBA notes:

Four Detroit Pistons Ben Wallace Chauncey Billups Simon Gratz’s Rasheed Wallace and Coatesville’s Richard Hamilton were on the court at the same time in the first third and fourth quarters of the NBA game.

Three players on the East team wore No. 3 Iverson Ben Wallace and Wade and fans had no trouble telling them apart.

After missing his first five shots Iverson made his first point with 10:35 left in the third quarter on a turnaround jumper over Phoenix’s Steve Nash. That seemed to ignite Iverson who entered the game averaging 18.2 points in his previous six NBA AllStar appearances.

Iverson shot 4 for 5 in the third quarter and entered the fourth period with nine points. The NBA East team had narrowed the deficit to 9794 entering the fourth quarter.

About the writer:  Julie Smith is one of the most recognized copy writers on Sports Betting and currently writes for Instant Action Sports. Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety on your site make sure to leave all links in place and do not modify any of the content.

5 Tips To Win In Nba Fantasy Basketball League

For months now I’ve been managing my own team in our custom NBA Fantasy League. Until early November I had no idea how the NBA Fantasy League works. One of my friends at work created a custom NBA league at yahoo and invited me to join in. I found it quite interesting so I joined the fantasy league.

I learned that when you join an NBA fantasy league your role will be that of a Team Owner or a Manager. You select your own players from the roster of realworld NBA players and form your own team. When your players play well in the real world you win! When they are having an off game you lose! That’s basically it.

During the draft night I had no idea who to pick. I had not watched an NBA game for quite some time so I only knew those famous players who unfortunately tend to be old and prone to injury. Hence during the early part of the NBA season I had players sitting on the bench waiting for their injuries to heal. Being a beginner I struggled to find the right combination of players always feeling that all good and quality players have already been selected by other teams. My team struggled along with me as it went down to the bottom of the pack.

My first win came after months of figuring out what works. I also had to figure out how to select good players when to release and how to monitor the injured list. Here’s a list of the lessons I learned while managing my own team in NBA fantasy league.

1. Consistency. I tend to look for players who are consistent. They need not be spectacular. They just need to be consistent day in and day out. Most of the time though the allstar players tend to be the most consistent. Some players have one breakout game and then they suddenly fade into mediocre performances. Some players however put up decent numbers everyday whether they are having an off game or not whether they are playing through injuries or not.
2. Offense. As half of the statistical categories are related to offense like field goals made and percentage 3points made free throws made and percentage it really makes sense to concentrate on offense. When you really think about it the better scorer a player is the more involved he is in defense as well. He sometimes gets more rebounds assists steals and blocks. Of course there are always some exceptional cases.
3. Extra skill. I like to find players who are good in more than one statistical category. For example I have players who are good in scoring rebounding and blocks. They tend to be a forward or a center and can play multiple positions. I also have guards who are good in scoring assist and/or steals. Sometimes they are even good in blocks which is certainly surprising.
4. Injuries. Watch out for injuries. If your own players are injured they are practically not playing. It is as if they are benched. Your team will be at a disadvantage simply because the other team will have more opportunities to do something on the court and contribute to the statistics. Sometimes the injury is not serious so it’s ok to leave them on the lineup. However players fresh from injuries tend to play miserably on their first game back so be careful also. It may bring down the field goals and free throw percentages and it might even get you a very healthy dose of turnovers. On the other hand the injured list is also laden with opportunities for agile team managers. Sometimes a team just needs to release its injured players because it cannot afford to have too many players sitting on the bench. I once saw a team having its 5 players on the injured list. So once the injured player is released you can add him into your roster for future use. It pays to know how long the injury is going to take. Of course you don’t want to add a player who will be out for at least 4 months or worse out for the rest of the NBA season.
5. Patience. Lastly it pays to be patient on your players. Just like in the realworld they are bound to have a few off games every now and then. It’s also good to know whether there’s a specific reason why the player is having an off game. Sometimes it’s because of a delayed flight schedule or a new coach or perhaps the player might be nursing a minor injury. In most cases players tend to come back strong after a poor performance. So just don’t drop them off just yet.

This is a very general list. I still have a long way to go until I master the art of managing an elite NBA fantasy league team. I am still at the bottom of our custom league’s ranking. To my pleasant surprise however by following the above simple rules I’ve already started winning and having a small streak of my own. Maybe I’ve finally figured a thing or two about this exciting world of NBA fantasy league. How about you?

Update: After5 straight weeks of winning my team is finally out of the bottom of our leagues standings.o/

About the writer:  I am Allan Inocente. I’m a software lead programmer / tester by profession specializing in mainframe languages consumer banking and credit card systems. I love playing sports like basketball badminton and tennis. I also enjoy watching Sports TV shows and movies.

2009 Nba All Star Game – A Wonderful Event In Nba History

That is the place where you can see live basket ball NBA AllStars and players converge not only for matches of the NBA AllStar Game but also can watch various activities and events. It was the 58th NBA AllStar Game in which NBA AllStar festivities started on Friday 13 February finishing on Sunday. You can review the weekend attractions of NBA AllStar Game and live NBA basketball scores on online.

NBA All Star Game is held on the city of Phoenix third time. First time it was taken place on 15 January 1975 and played at the venue of Veterans Memorial Coliseum. In that match New York Knicks Walt had made 30 points score leading to the way to MVP award beating East over West by 108102. In that time some of top players were Elvin Hayes rick Barry Kareem AbdulJabbar and Archibald. Second time it was taken place in 12 February 1995 at the place of West Arena. In that match Sacramento Kings supported Mitch Richmond getting scored 23 points just in 22 minutes to win MVP honors. In this way The West defeated the East just for 139112 win with players such as Scottie Pippen Hakeem Olajuwon Patrick Ewing Karl Malone and David Robinson. 2009 event is marked in the honor of City of Phoenix as hosting it third time.

In that start of the tournament The Knicks seemed to beat the Griz last night. Yes Griz fans were disappointed as they were hoping to perform well from their sports heroes. As in the side of Sixers a Mofault is a tremendous player who possesses excellent young talent. But the status of the Griz was not at all bright. Sorry to say this but the fate of Gril in the2009 NBA AllStar seemed as dismal as the LA Clippers. Details about these players can be viewed though NBA Basketball results.

Knicks were on top ranking with three consecutive winning over their opponents. The Sixers also were expected to advance further in this event after having seven straight and the eighth time victory but Dirk Nowitzki was dominated on them as a game winner Monday. The Sixers should not lose hopes as victory or defeat is the part of game. They are losing hopes because they are off for nearly a week and in Saturday; it may be the return of Elton Brand.
Bottom Line is that Knicks defeated the Sixers after great fight between these two teams live score results could tell you more about this game. The Knicks are seen in more rehearsed form in the fast paced system of frantic DAntoni. David Lee has made 31 double and Duhon is appearing as a true point. Sixers are still in fancy as they are not accepting their defeat but all that is happened on 15 February before excited basket ball fanatics.

About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;Ally White is a top senior copy writer on NBA games and sports action for the sportsbetting www.instantactionsports.com/Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety on your site make sure to leave all links in place and do not modify any of the content.

2008 Nba-olympics Basketball!

Congratulations to those players seleted for the United States Men’s Olympic Basketball Team from Coach Jamaal of Boise’s Jamaal AlDin’s Hoops 227 the everything basketball website!!! This year the Olympic Summer Games are being held in Beijing China…the home of “chow Mein” lo Mein ans Coach J’s favorite szchezwaun beef!!! The USA Basketball ExecutiveCommittee is responsible for the selection process and let’s just say it’s great to select from the NBA who plays host to the most extraordinary basketball talent in the world!!!

Mike Krzyzewski of the storied Duke University NCAA basketball program in Durham North Carolina ACC is the Head Basketball Coach of the United States Olympic Basketball Senior Team. Nate McMillan Mike D’Antoni and Jim Boeheim of the Portland Trailblazers New York Knicks and Syracuse Univerity respectively are USA the Olympic Basketball Assistant Coaches for the 2008 Olympic Games held in Beijing China.

Team members include these National Basketball Association stars!

Carmelo Anthony Denver Nuggets; the explosive Carmelo Anthony is a versatile NBA talent from Baltimore Maryland and Syracuse University. With an NCAA basketball championship he’s now paired up with Allen Iverson “The Answer” in Denver with hope of bringing a title to the Mile High City!
Chris Bosh Toronto Raptors; Chris Bosh is a phenomenal leaper with unparalleled basketball skills in the paint. Chris Bosh’s athleticism makes for exciting NBA dunks and “rim shakers!”NBA basketball at its finest and will be fireworks to see him paired up on the basketball hardwood with the likes of Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron “King” James Cleveland Cavaliers!
Michael Redd Milwaukee Bucks; Michael Redd’s terrific long range game is TOPPS in the NBA and during Olympic play it will be enteresting to see him play bombs away against international basketball teams. Michael Reddplayed collegiatelyat Ohio State University.
Deron Williams Utah Jazz; Deron Williams has both a strong basketball inside game and outside jumper. Slashes his way through opponents with penetration similar to a vibrant “Rookie” basketball version of Gary Payton The Glove from Oregon State University. Deron Williams played collegiately at the University of Illinois Big 10/NCAA
Chris Paul New Orleans Hornets; Chris Paul had arguably the best season of all National Basketball Association NBA players andand some basketball fans writers andcritics feel as though heshould have won the NBA’s MVP award. Chris Paul is aversatile Point Guard with a knack for penetrating the lane and creating havok for defenders as big men in the middle have to converge leaving wide open jump shots for Chris Paul’s CP’s teammates in New Orleans. The New Orleans Hornets are having an exciting time with NBA basketball and Olympic basketball fans will be watching one of the best point guards in themodern NBA! Chris Paul played for the Wake ForrestDemon Deacons of the NCAA’s Atlantic Coast Conference notable ACC basketball programs: Duke University University of Maryland North Carolina State University Florida State University and University of North Carolina.
Tayshaun Prince Coach Jamaal’s! Detroit Pistons; Tayshaun Prince is a wirey smooth shootingguardwith great touch. Coach Jamaal AlDin of Jamaal AlDin’s Hoops 227 grew up as aDetroit Pistons fan watching Isiah Thomas Joe Dumars Bill Laimbeer John Salley Mark Aguireand Dennis Rodman.It will be basketball heaven to watch Tayshaun Prince teamed up with guards like Chris Paul Wake Forest Deamon Deacons/ New Orleans Hornets and Deron Williams University of Illinois “Fighting” Illini/ Utah Jazz. Tayshaun Prince played NCAA basketball at the University ofKentucky “Wildcats” forCoach Tubby Smith.
Dwight Howard Orlando Magic; an extraordinary physical basketball talent who is quickly making his mark on the entire National Basketball Association NBA. Dwight Howard see 227′s You Tube Dwight Howard is a physical inside player who rebounds and scores with the best basketball centers and forwards in the NBA. Look for Howard to control the paint like SHAQ Phoenix Suns and dominate Olympic play. Noted for his famous U Tube YouTube you tube utube “Superman” dunk Dwight Howard came into the NBA right after highschool like his NBA counterpart…Kobe Bryant of the 81 point performance which can be seen on YouTube!
Dwayne Wade Miami Heat; DWade of the marketing NBA creatives is a slashy creative shooting guard witha championship ring to go with the exceptional performance he put on during the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. Dwayne Wade’s game is versatile and shouldflourish during Olympic style basketball play. Dwayne Wade played collegiately at Marquette University NCAA.
Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers; Kobe Bryant… well Kobe Bryant need I say more. An 81 point scoring outburst and a phenominal 200708 season with the Los Angeles Lakers which culminated in a Western Conference Championship. Kobe will be a special basketball treat for all Olympic basketball fans. Kobe entered the NBA right out of highschool similiar to the legendary Moses Malone “4 4 4″ and Darryl Dawkins “Chocolate Thunder!” Kobe is a product of Philly.
LeBron James Cleveland Cavaliers; the most electrifying dunker ofmodernNBA basketballand arguably alltime. LeBron’s strong game of dunkyouverymuch and power has took theNational Basketball Association by storm! LeBron isonly a blink away from establishing himself as theepitome of NBA shooting guards with strength and power to go along with his basketball intelligence which is unmatched! LeBron James came into the NBA right after highschool and was regarded highly as everyone’s McDonald’s Basketball AllAmerican from Ohio.
Carlos Boozer Utah Jazz; the former Duke University Blue Devil is a fierce inside presence and has a soft touch he’llbe an asset teamming up with Deron Williams as they’re teammateswith the Western Conference Utah Jazz in the NBA.

Some of the basketball members of the United States Men’s Basketball USA Team have had experience with FIBA Basketball and the World Championships. Stay tuned andwatch the best of the best USA basketball talent during the Olympicsin Beijing China. Coach Jamaal AlDin of Jamaal AlDin’s Hoops 227 says “Good Luck red white and blue!” Jamaal AlDin is a former player of Olympic scoring record setter Ed Palubinskas who played at BYUIdaho formerly Ricks College and LSU. Coach Palubinskas is a member of the Australia Basketball Hall of Fame. Jamaal AlDin’s Hoops 227 the everything basketball website!

About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;Played for the great legendary Coach Ed Palubinskas of Olympic fame and college history. Ed Palubinskas set Olympic scoring records while playing for the Australian Olympic Basketball National Team and is well kwown for shooting accuracy so much that he tutored the great NBA Legend Shaquille O’Neal while with the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers and currently the NBA World Champion Miami Heat! Ed Palubinskas was great to play for he made me work really hard and taught me to shoot to convert and with accuracy!
Ed Palubinskas is developer of “The Smartball” advertised on the NFL Network and ESPN. http://www.hoops227.atomicshops.com

Top Defensive Player at the University of Michigan Basketball Camp http://www.mgoblue.com
AllState Varsity Basketball Mountain Home High School
Averaged 24 pts/game as State’s Leading Scorer
Member of Idaho Sports Exchange Basketball Team which competed in Germany! The Idaho Sports Exchange was coached by Gary Buell of Idaho Falls High School and included former University of Idaho star and NFL player Yo Murphy!

Played for Coach Charlie Miller at West Virginia Wesleyan College
Notable West Virginia Wesleyan Bobcats: Press Maravich coached at West Virginia Wesleyan College before LSU. He is the father of LSU NCAA and NBA Hall of Famer “Pistol” Pete Maravich!.
Gave scholarship to Trent Whiting of Kuna High School who later attended and starred at University of Utah for Coach Rick Majerus and Brigham Young University.
Appeared on Boise ESPN affiliate sports radio station KTIK Radio in June of 2007 regarding basketball camps and clinics for youth in Boise Idaho.

2008 Nba Finals Champion P.j. Brown

Collier Brown Jr. AKA P.J. Brown currently plays for the NBA’s Boston Celtics as a center/power forward. In college Brown played at Louisiana Tech for a period of four years. He left the school as the 2nd alltime leader in blocks with 241 and 5th in rebounds with 1017. In the 1992 NBA draft he was selected out of Louisiana Tech University by the New Jersey Nets. He opted to play in Greece his first year out of college for the Panionios. His first playing season with the Nets in 1993 he played in 240 regular season games starting in 198 of those games and averaging 8 points and 6 rebounds in 30 minutes of the game. In the 1994 NBA Playoffs he appeared in 4 playoff games and participated in the 1994 Rookie Challenge during the NBA ALLStar Weekend.

Brown signed to the Miami Heat in the 1996 season where he shined receiving the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award and also was elected to the NBA AllDefensive Second Team. P.J. Brown undoubtedly played a key role in pushing the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals during the 1997 NBA Playoffs. The Heat lost to the Chicago Bulls that year but the team did not miss the playoffs in the four seasons that Brown was part of.

In 2000 P.J. Brown was traded to the Chicago Bulls but did not last past the 2006 season where he signed with the Boston Celtics. Brown had an exceptional breakthrough in Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2008 where he scored 10 points and turned 6 rebounds. He also shined in the 2008 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers in his 15 year career gaining the championship for the Celtics.

About the writer:  About the Author: Eddie Delgado is the owner of AmazingDogsPlace.com a leading provider of dog supplies for sale. For more information please visit www.amazingdogsplace.com. Eddie is also a vintage sports memorabilia collector and owns www.vintagesportscardmemorabilia.com

2007 Nba Finals From A Bettors Perspective

The 2007 NBA finals will be great for sports investors although it will go against many of the traditional rules weekend warrior bettors may be used to.

To start large spreads are usually indicative of large market teams. The spread for game one CleSA is 7.5 points with the home team favored. Considering the finals are a showdown between the final survivors of each conference 7.5 points is monumental.

Lets take a look at reason why SA may cover this spread.

1They are considered the better team and easily have the better pedigree. SA led by Tim Duncan who is widely considered a top 10 NBA player if not higher leads a team of savvy veterans who have been there done that. Yet they do not hold the same swagger other dynasties have and yes in todays day and age the Spurs are as much of a dynasty as the Patriots. In fact since they are often ignored they continue to play the game hard as if they have a chip on their collective shoulders. This team never gives an inch and takes every facet of the game seriously.

2Its early in the series and though an older team they have had ample rest since defeating Utah to recuperate. Add to the fact that Cle has just come off a grueling series and not just physically but mentally. 2 losses by 3 points. One double overtime. And now all the hype surrounding them. That type of media and fan frenzy can wear down any team but is even more the case when it comes to a younger team like the Cavs.

3Beyond Duncan they have a series of players who consistently show up in big games. Sometimes their heroics are staggered between them but often times they show up all together. Duncan can have a bad game and hit a doubledouble but it will be Parker Ginobili Bowen Finley Horry and the rest of the crew that simply will continue to pour it on. How many times has any one of those guys come through for their team? The bottom line if any one of them is on their game 7.5 points is a cake spread.

4This is the finals there is no need to conserve any more energy. SA saw what the rest of the world did that the Cavs can play defense rebound and score in bunches when needed. And even moreso they never give up. Teams like that are dangerous to stick around and the leadership and staff in SA will not make such a mistake.
Now before you rush out and place your wagers though lets look at reasons why Cle will beat the spread.

17.5 points is a lot of points. Especially against a team playing full of confidence and was just crowned the Kings of the East. During the regular season Cle easily beat this spread in fact they beat SA straight up both at home and on the road. In those 2 games they were 5.5 and 3.5 point underdogs.

2LeBron is LeBron. When was the last time he had a bad game? Sure his 20 points and 14 rebounds were not close to his previous performance but I think I even saw a kitchen sink thrown at him from the Detroit bench. Meaning he controls a game both directly and indirectly. Mind you it is conceivable the SA defense could shut him down and then the Cavs role players shoot bricks at an ice covered hoop all night but this is the biggest series of all their lives and they have nothing to lose. No one expected them here yet an entire region is now on their bandwagon. LeBron will make an impact and that impact is enough to bridge a 7.5 point spread.

3The Cavs are hot. They are 2161 against the spread in their last 28 road games and 38151 ATS in their last 54 game over all. Of the last 10 times they were underdogs 80 of those cashed in profits for their fans. Take trends as you will because honestly you are only as good as your next game. But their last game was pretty good as were the games before that. The bottom line is not only did they beat the Spurs straight up twice this season but they beat or tied the spread nearly 79 of the time on the road and 80 of the time as underdogs in their recent history. Yet they are larger underdogs than before?

4A quick glance will show SA as leaders in almost every statistical category but a closer look will show the numbers are closer than it seems. SA has a decided edge in playoff ppg as a team 97.9 versus the Cavs 90.9 but SA has played more offense orientated teams Denver Utah and the Suns all push offense over defense. The Cavs meanwhile faced both Wash and NJ who definitely are capable of scoring but not once were at the level of the Suns and only Wash came close to Denvers season output. Then add in they played a season strong defense team in Detroit and thought Ill let the fans argue what conference was better the bottom line is SA played against teams that rely more on offense and therefore allow more offense. They have not yet played a defensive team of the Cavs caliber. Which leads us to our next stat rpg: SA=39.8 CLE=43.9. Cle has averaged more rpg against opponents who shot less. Which means they hit the boards significantly harder than SA. Looking at the numbers closer 7.5 points seems like the lock of the year.

There you are reasons and rationale why either team will make the 7.5 spread. You are now armed with all the knowledge you need to make a decision. However before you go and lay down all your money one way or the other. Take a look at the series as a whole. The truth is as far as the media is concerned the Spurs will win this series in 5 or 6 games. And you know what? Given their deeper talent familiarity with pressure and leadership this should be true. But as sports investors who wins this series is secondary. We dont get to hold any trophies. But like the multimillionaires we too can earn nice financial bonuses off this series.

However Game 1 pans out remember the sportsbooks/bookies goal will be to make as much money as possible. And though you should have the same goal they are in control. They have between 4 and 7 games to adjust the lines based on betting trends shifting home courts and injuries momentum of the series and more. Meaning take 1 game at a time and only invest what you can afford to lose.

About the writer:  HRI is the leading Sports Investing Authority both online and off. Located at www.investingsports.com our distinct approach allows an investor to profit off a diverse portfolio centered around recreation and sporting events.